The Burswood Entertainment Complex Review

Review By Hamish Hastie

The Burswood Entertainment Complex is a place where bright eyed and bushytailed 18 year olds come to experience the world of adulthood and have their dreams and expectations crushed by the theft of their hard earned money on the roulette tables and pokies.

Many a clubbing-grommet have come here on the very day they turn 18 with their parents to get straight into buying drinks and gambling legally. This is mainly because it’s the only place in Perth that caters for both parent and child. I recall my 18th and the horrors I experienced upon losing the $50 my parents gave me to gamble. If only I had of resited the visually stimulating delights of the pokies and the attractive blackjack dealer and kept it! I could have bought five drinks or be well on my way to buying a new pair of white pointy shoes (as was the rage back then).

The casino is an odd experience to those not well versed in its ways. Everyone looks like they’re feeding an addiction, the knowledge that you’re always being watched is unnerving and every time you go you’ll always get posed with the dilemma of whether to go to EVE or not (despite telling yourself before you leave the house that tonight, you will not attend). I’ve had some really bad nights at Burswood but with the bad come the good and every so often I find myself having a good time.

The main problem with Burswood is the people. It’s hard to enjoy yourself with a drink and a gamble when you see pensioners throwing their money down the drain and drunken idiots looking to fight anything (including pot plants).

Fortunately Burswood has realised this below par reputation and have tried to reverse it with extensive renovations and new bars to chill out, watch sport, grab a bite to eat or make a last ditch late night effort to take someone home.

At Burswood you have a big range of choices to have a drink at. The Carbon Sports Bar covers the sporting side of things with two massive screens catering for big sports events, the Minq bar is a cool, secluded late night cocktail bar (bring your pineapples because it is expensive), the Mesh and Diamond bar are for those wanting to take a break from the gambling, the (A)Lure bar is where you can go to relax and enjoy some decent food and Paddy Hannan’s is the token Irish pub where you can enjoy a few pints and argue about football. If you want a dance then you can go to EVE but be weary because it’s all R’n’B, cake faces and aggression.

Drinks are standard Perth prices with spirits around $8 and beers can be found for $7. Personally, I thought with the amount of pension cheques the Burswood rakes in that drinks prices would be a bit lower than the rest of Perth but apparently money is more of a motivator than patron happiness.

With recent refurbishments Burswood has lifted its game a bit and has provided more lures to go there rather than just gambling. It’s still a very hit and miss place though. If you’re going just to soak up the atmosphere you’ll be bitterly disappointed and your disappointment will just empower the executives upstairs while they’re bathing in their money baths. I’ve heard they feed on the tears of the sad and lonely…




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A 2nd Look Review Of The Burswood Entertainment Complex

By Cassandra Auzin

Once the Mecca for all things bogan, Burswood is beginning to redeem its recent failings and work towards making itself a much more accessible place for everyone else looking for an all-round good night out.

I started my night there as the little hand on the clock circled the higher part of the clock, which to be honest is probably the best time to go because if there are any shows at the theatre or concerts at the dome you’ll miss most of the escaping crowds.

Also, avoid Carbon Sports Bar during big sporting events. Yes, they may make fantastic and reasonably priced ($14) cocktails but the screaming men and crowds just aren’t worth it. Spend that extra few dollars and take the secret elevator up to Minq. It requires better dress than jeans but holds a similar vibe and crowd to places such as Luxe, Salt and Ellington. Cocktails sit between $17-$20 ($10 on Sundays) but the abilities and skills of the bartenders is worth it.

Paddy Hannigan’s is the place to go for after work drinks or just to enjoy a noisy night out with fellow members of the Commonwealth. The place is kicking off from five but by the time I arrived, it was completely full and personally, starting to wain in its appeal. The same goes for Spice Lounge; the place is closing up by the time the rest of it is heating up.

I’ve never once been to Burswood and found the Diamond Bar open. Its hours seem to range around the six until midnight mark and after that it stays silent. Opposite at Mesh, the crowds are impossibly deep and most people are ordering a handful of drinks that take a while to make. One word: Avoid!

So here’s your timetable for Burswood (on a night where there are no shows, concerts, etc): Meet at Paddys for afternoon drinks, already pretty and ready to go and follow it with dinner at one of the many wonderful and variously priced restaurants that dot the complex.

From there, find the secret elevator before 10pm and avoid the entry fee (which can be used to buy an extra drink) at Minq. Once that overfills and you find yourself squeezed out the door, head down to Snax for, well, a snack and finish the night off with more cocktails (or spirits) at Carbon while trying to keep your eyes focused on just one of the many giant sporting screens in front of you.

As a former employee of this fine establishment, those are the best tips I can offer anyone new to Burswood. Once a place to avoid, with new restaurants and entertainment filling up the venue, it’s now become a place to visit any day of the week and find something to whet your social appetite.

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